Hawaiian Electric Industries

Last updated

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc.
Company type Public company
FoundedOctober 13, 1891;132 years ago (1891-10-13)
Headquarters Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$3.742 billion [1]  (2022)
Increase2.svg US$381 million [1]  (2022)
Decrease2.svg US$241 million [1]  (2022)
Total assets Increase2.svg US$9.546 billion [1]  (2022)
Total equity US$468.885 million [1]  (2022)
Number of employees
2,511 full-time [1]  (2022)
Subsidiaries Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc.
Hawai'i Electric Light Company, Inc.
Maui Electric Company, Limited
Pacific Current LLC
American Savings Bank
Website hei.com
www.hawaiianelectric.com
HECO power plant at Kahe Point in West Oahu HECO West Oahu.jpg
HECO power plant at Kahe Point in West Oahu

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (HEI) is the largest supplier of electricity in the U.S. state of Hawaii, supplying power to 95% of Hawaii's population through its electric utilities: Hawaiian Electric Company serving Oahu, Hawai'i Electric Light Company serving The Big Island, and Maui Electric Company serving Maui, Lanai and Molakai. In addition, HEI owns a financial institution serving Hawaii, American Savings Bank, and a clean energy and sustainability company, Pacific Current LLC. [2]

Contents

Hawaiian Electric Company (abbreviated HECO and pronounced HEE-coh), Hilo Electric Light Company (later renamed Hawai'i Electric Light Company, abbreviated HELCO and pronounced HEL-coh), and Maui Electric Company (abbreviated MECO and pronounced MEE-coh) employ more than 2,000 people. Approximately 20,000 Hawaii residents are shareholders of HECO’s parent company, Hawaiian Electric Industries. [3] The company is headquartered in Honolulu.

The island of Kauai is the only Hawaiian island not supplied by HEI. Instead, the consumer-owned Kauai Island Utility Cooperative manages that island's electricity.

History

Hawaiian Electric Company incorporated on October 13, 1891. [4] Within about 16 years the utility had 2,500 customers on Oahu. By 1914 HECO had started rural service to the windward side of the island and was marketing electric products like refrigerators and flat irons. In 1937 HECO broke ground on its second power plant, and transmission lines soon crisscrossed Oahu. [5]

War and statehood

During World War II HECO power plants linked to military bases, generating more than one million kilowatt hours of electricity each day. (= > 42 MW average power).

Hawaii became a state in 1959, and by then Oahu was entirely electrified. HECO opened a 116 MW plant in downtown Honolulu in 1954. The state's first reheat steam turbine generator went on line at Kahe on the west coast of Oahu. Today, Kahe is the state's largest plant with a total generating capacity of 650 MW.

Island expansion

HECO purchased Maui Electric Company in 1968. In 1970, HECO acquired the Hawaii Island's Hilo Electric Light Company. In 1988 MECO acquired the Lāna‘i City power plant on the island of Lānaʻi, and in 1989, Molokai Electric Company on the island of Molokaʻi. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (HEI) was created as a holding company for these various utilities in 1983. [2] In 2013, HECO began working with Siemens to develop a self-healing grid in eastern Oʻahu and Waikīkī to ensure a reliable electrical supply. [6]

On December 4, 2014, NextEra Energy tendered an offer to purchase HEI for $4.3 billion (equivalent to $5.45 billion in 2023). [7] The sale required approval by the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission. [8] On July 18, 2016, it was announced that the merger was cancelled after the Public Utilities Commission disapproved the deal. [9] The merger included plans to convert HEI's oil-fired generating plants to run on natural gas, which were to use liquified natural gas imported from a British Columbia plant of FortisBC. The upgrades were cancelled as they were dependent upon approval of the merger. [10]

On December 24, 2019, HECO announced that it would begin operating under a single name with its subsidiaries MECO and HELCO—Hawaiian Electric. [11]

Maui wildfires

At around midnight on August 8, 2023, a brush fire was ignited in the Kula area in the central part of Maui. This quickly spread all across many parts of Hawaii, causing buildings, houses, businesses, vehicles, and acres of land to be destroyed and burnt. Power lines that were owned by Hawaiian Electric were blown down and over 12,000 people that resided in the Maui area were left without power. As of August 17, 2023, 111 people have died due to the wildfire, more than a thousand people went missing, and thousands more were forced to evacuate Hawaii altogether. Investigations are currently underway to officially determine what caused the fire, and they are currently are looking into whether downed power lines and decisions by Hawaiian Electric were the cause of the deadly wildfires. As a result of the wildfires, much of Hawaii was under a red flag warning for fire risk when the wildfires broke out, particularly with high winds caused by Hurricane Dora, which was a Category 4 hurricane with high speed winds reaching maximum speeds of up to 145 miles per hour (233 km/h). [12]

"A flash drought in the region provided plenty of kindling, and Hurricane Dora brought strong winds to Maui as it passed roughly 500 miles (800 kilometers) south of the Hawaii island chain. Those winds downed at least 30 power poles in West Maui, and Hawaiian Electric had no procedure in place for turning off the grid — a common practice in other fire-prone states. Video shot by a Lahaina resident shows a downed powerline setting dry grasses alight, possibly revealing the start of the larger fire."[ citation needed ]

After the catastrophic and deadly wildfires, Hawaiian Electric's stock severely plummeted approximately 40%, its lowest since 2010, after it was facing a class action lawsuit that alleged that Maui’s devastating wildfires were caused by the utility’s energized power lines that were knocked down by strong winds, and that it chose not to shut off its power lines ahead of the Maui wildfires, despite knowing the safety risks of sparking a fire in those kind of conditions. It also stated that Hawaiian Electric still refused to shut down power lines despite it knowing that some of its power lines were knocked out by the heavy, high speed winds. [13] On August 23, it was reported that Hawaiian Electric had no procedure in place for turning off the grid — a common practice in other fire-prone states. [14]

Generation

In 2023, power handled by HEI was 33% renewable. [15] Hawai‘i Island set a record for HEI, generating a peak of 92.3% renewable power on April 25, 2023. [15] In 2016 HECO produced 8.8 TWh, of which 2.3 TWh were renewable. [16] Most of the power came from oil, using 8.5 million barrels in 2016, down from 10.7 million barrels in 2008. [17]

Hawaiian Electric supports the adoption of electric vehicles. The company's goal is to have the majority of vehicles in Hawaii be electric vehicles by 2045. As of November 2018, EVs were 1% of all vehicles. Hawaiian Electric filed a road map with the state. [18]

List shows HEI-owned power plants. Totals include power purchased from independent plant owners of various types and distributed solar.

Oahu

Oil-fired generators at Hawaiian Electric Kahe Power Plant in Kapolei on the Waianae Coast Oil-fired generators at Hawaiian Electric Kahe Power Plant in Kapolei on the Waianae Coast.jpg
Oil-fired generators at Hawaiian Electric Kahe Power Plant in Kapolei on the Waianae Coast

HEI's total firm generating capability in 2023 is 1,614.5 megawatts serving 306,978 customers. Non-firm capacity was 987.6 megawatts. In 2022, 28% of power came from renewable resources, compared to 25% in 2020. [19]

OilMegawatts (MW)
Waiau499
Kahe651
CIP130
SolarMW
West Loch Solar20

Maui/Lanai/Molokai

Total firm generating capability in 2022 was 273.1 megawatts serving 73,933 customers. Non-firm capacity was 212.2 MW. 35.6% came from renewable resources, compared to 40.8% in 2020. [19]

OilMW
Maalaea212.1
Kahului37.6
Lanai9.4
Molokai12.0
Hana (Dispersed generation)2.0

Hawaii

Total firm generating capability in 2022 was 280.5 megawatts serving 88,757 customers. Non-firm capacity was 168.6 MW. 47.9% came from renewable resources, compared to 34.7% in 2020.

HELCO power plants (oil)MW
Hill34.7
Puna36.7
Keahole77.6
Kanoelehua21.0
Shipman15.2 – Decommissioned in December 2015
Waimea7.5
Dispersed generation5.0
HydropowerMW
Pu‘u‘eo Hydro3.4
Waiau Hydro1.1

Electric vehicles

Through a cooperative effort with HECO, High Technology Development Corporation (HTDC), an agency of the State of Hawai’i, initiated the Hawai’i Electric Vehicle Demonstration Project (HEVDP) consortium to develop an electric vehicle industry in Hawai’i. [20] The islands had about 5,000 rechargeable vehicles as of 2017. [17]

Plans

In 2015, the Hawaii State Legislature amended the State's Renewable Portfolio Standards to establish the nation's first goal of 100% renewable energy: [21]

YearRPS %
202030% [22]
203040%
204070%
2045100%

Hawaiian Electric has indicated in its Power Supply Improvement Plan that it will achieve these goals ahead of schedule. [23] From 2021, HEI transitioned away from cost of service to Performance Based Regulation. [24] [25]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Colorado River Authority</span> Public utility in Texas that manages the lower Colorado River

The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) is a nonprofit public utility created in November 1934 by the Texas Legislature. LCRA's mission is to enhance the lives of the Texans it serves through water stewardship, energy and community service. LCRA provides public power, manages the lower Colorado River, builds and operates transmission lines, owns public parks, and offers community services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern California Edison</span> Electrical utility in Southern California, United States

Southern California Edison (SCE), the largest subsidiary of Edison International, is the primary electric utility company for much of Southern California. It provides 15 million people with electricity across a service territory of approximately 50,000 square miles.

Puget Sound Energy (PSE) is an energy utility company based in the U.S. state of Washington that provides electrical power and natural gas to the Puget Sound region. The utility serves electricity to more than 1.1 million customers in Island, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Pierce, Skagit, Thurston, and Whatcom counties, and provides natural gas to 750,000 customers in King, Kittitas, Lewis, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston counties. The company's electric and natural gas service area spans 6,000 square miles (16,000 km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xcel Energy</span> American utility company

Xcel Energy Inc. is a U.S. regulated electric utility and natural gas delivery company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving more than 3.7 million electric customers and 2.1 million natural gas customers across parts of eight states. It consists of four operating subsidiaries: Northern States Power-Minnesota, Northern States Power-Wisconsin, Public Service Company of Colorado, and Southwestern Public Service Co.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Electric Power</span> United States utility company

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (AEP), is an American domestic electric utility company in the United States. It is one of the largest electric utility companies in the country, with more than five million customers in 11 states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wind power in the United States</span>

Wind power is a branch of the energy industry that has expanded quickly in the United States over the last several years. From January through December 2023, 425.2 terawatt-hours were generated by wind power, or 10.18% of electricity in the United States. The average wind turbine generates enough electricity in 46 minutes to power the average American home for one month. In 2019, wind power surpassed hydroelectric power as the largest renewable energy source in the U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wind power in Texas</span> Electricity from wind in one U.S. state

Wind power in Texas, a portion of total energy in Texas, consists of over 150 wind farms, which together have a total nameplate capacity of over 30,000 MW. If Texas were a country, it would rank fifth in the world: The installed wind capacity in Texas exceeds installed wind capacity in all countries but China, the United States, Germany and India. Texas produces the most wind power of any U.S. state. According to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), wind power accounted for at least 15.7% of the electricity generated in Texas during 2017, as wind was 17.4% of electricity generated in ERCOT, which manages 90% of Texas's power. ERCOT set a new wind output record of nearly 19.7 GW at 7:19 pm Central Standard Time on Monday, January 21, 2019.

A feed-in tariff is a policy mechanism designed to accelerate investment in renewable energy technologies by offering long-term contracts to renewable energy producers. This means promising renewable energy producers an above-market price and providing price certainty and long-term contracts that help finance renewable energy investments. Typically, FITs award different prices to different sources of renewable energy in order to encourage the development of one technology over another. For example, technologies such as wind power and solar PV are awarded a higher price per kWh than tidal power. FITs often include a "digression": a gradual decrease of the price or tariff in order to follow and encourage technological cost reductions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wind power in Iowa</span> Electricity from wind in one U.S. state

Making up over 62% of the state's generated electricity in 2022, wind power is the largest source of electricity generation in Iowa. In 2020, over 34 billion kWh of electrical energy was generated by wind power. As of 2022, Iowa has over 12,200 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity with over 6,000 wind turbines, ranking second and third in the nation below Texas respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar power in the United States</span>

Solar power includes solar farms as well as local distributed generation, mostly on rooftops and increasingly from community solar arrays. In 2023, utility-scale solar power generated 164.5 terawatt-hours (TWh), or 3.9% of electricity in the United States. Total solar generation that year, including estimated small-scale photovoltaic generation, was 238 TWh.

AES Barbers Point Plant was a medium-size coal-fired electrical power station located in the south-west corner of the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Owned and operated by AES, the plant was the only coal-fired power plant in the state of Hawaii and was the state's leading single source of toxic pollutants. AES Barbers Point Power Plant consisted of a single unit on the grounds of Campbell Industrial Park, had a year-around capacity of 180 MWe, and in 2006 represented about 11% of Oahu's commercial electricity supply.

Lalamilo Wells is a wind farm on the island of Hawaii. It is located within the ahupuaʻa called Lalamilo, between the coastal area known as Puako, Hawaii, and the inland towns of Waimea and Waikoloa Village, Hawaii. It was commissioned in 1985 with 39 17.5 kW Jacobs wind turbines and 81 20 kW Jacobs wind turbines, yielding a total capacity of 2.3 MW.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar power in Hawaii</span> Overview of solar power in the U.S. state of Hawaii

The energy sector in Hawaii has rapidly adopted solar power due to the high costs of electricity, and good solar resources, and has one of the highest per capita rates of solar power in the United States. Hawaii's imported energy costs, mostly for imported petroleum and coal, are three to four times higher than the mainland, so Hawaii has motivation to become one of the highest users of solar energy. Hawaii was the first state in the United States to reach grid parity for photovoltaics. Its tropical location provides abundant ambient energy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaheawa Wind Power</span> Hawaiian wind farm

Kaheawa Wind Power is one of the largest wind farms in Hawaii. It is located on the island of Maui above the town of Maalaea in the West Maui Mountains. Phase one of the project was completed in 2006 by developer and operator First Wind and produces 30 MW from 20 GE Energy 1.5 MW wind turbines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy in Hawaii</span> Overview of energy resources in Hawaii, US

Energy in the U.S. state of Hawaii is produced from a mixture of fossil fuel and renewable resources. Producing energy is complicated by the state's isolated location and lack of fossil fuel resources. The state relies heavily on imports of petroleum. Hawaii has the highest share of petroleum use in the United States, with about 62% of electricity coming from oil in 2017. As of 2021 renewable energy made up 34.5% on Oahu, Maui and the island of Hawaii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy in California</span> Overview of the use of energy in California, U.S.

Energy is a major area of the economy of California. California is the state with the largest population and the largest economy in the United States. It is second in energy consumption after Texas. As of 2018, per capita consumption was the fourth-lowest in the United States partially because of the mild climate and energy efficiency programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wind power in Hawaii</span> Electricity from wind in one U.S. state

Wind power in Hawaii is produced by the state's 132 commercial wind turbines, totaling 236 MW in capacity. In 2015, wind turbines produced 6.4% of Hawaii's electricity. In 2012, Hawaii generated 367 million kWh from wind power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawi Wind Farm</span> Wind farm in Hawaii

Hawi Wind Farm is a wind farm on Upolu Point, the northern tip of Hawaii's largest island, Hawaiʻi. Commissioned in 2006, it comprises sixteen 660 kW wind turbines manufactured by Vestas, specifically the Vestas V47 turbine. At maximum capacity the farm is able to produce 10.56 MW.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enel North America</span> American company headquartered in Andover, MA, United States

Enel North America is an American company headquartered in Andover, MA, United States. One of the renewable energy operators in North America, it was formed as a subsidiary of the global utility Enel S.p.A. in 2000. It has operations in the United States and Canada through its renewables and energy services businesses, with a portfolio including over 9.6 GW of renewable capacity, 160,000 EV charging stations, 4.7 GW of demand response capacity and 14 utility-scale battery energy storage systems, totaling 1,416 MWh of capacity under construction or in operation. It serves a customer base of over 4,500 businesses, utilities, and cities in North America.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Transition Report United States Securities and Exchange Commission; Archived 2023-08-16 at the Wayback Machine
  2. 1 2 "Company Profile". HEI. Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  3. ↑ "HECO Power Facts" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 29, 2010. Retrieved December 31, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Birth Of HECO". Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  5. ↑ "Electrifying Oahu". Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  6. ↑ "Smart Grid Project Improves Grid Reliability for Oahu, Hawaii - References - Siemens". w3.siemens.com. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  7. ↑ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth . Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  8. ↑ Chediak, Mark; Goossens, Ehren (December 4, 2014). "NextEra Buys Hawaii's Biggest Utility in Green Energy Test". Bloomberg News . Retrieved December 23, 2014.
  9. ↑ Steele, Anne (July 18, 2016). "NextEra, Hawaiian Electric Terminate Merger Bid". Wall Street Journal– via www.wsj.com.
  10. ↑ "Aging Hawaii Plant Upgrades Halted After Failed Merger". Engineering New Record. Vol. 277, no. 4. BNP Media. July 15, 2016. p. 14.
  11. ↑ Ladao, Mark (December 24, 2019). "Hawaiian Electric companies to operate under single name". Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
  12. ↑ Czachor, Emily Mae (August 17, 2023). "How did Maui fire start, cause Lahaina, Hawaii wildfire". CBS News. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  13. ↑ Rothenberg, Eva (August 14, 2023). "Hawaiian Electric Maui fires lawsuit". CNN. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  14. ↑ "In deadly Maui fires, many had no warning and no way out. Those who dodged barricades survived". AP News. August 23, 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  15. 1 2
  16. ↑ "Clean Energy Facts". HECO. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  17. 1 2 "Hawaii's Clean Energy and Oil Consumption Report Card". April 24, 2017. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  18. ↑ "Hawaii Plan Plots Course to an All-Electric Car Future". www.govtech.com. April 10, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  19. 1 2 "Power Facts". www.hawaiianelectric.com.
  20. ↑ "High Technology Development Corporation > About Us". Archived from the original on July 16, 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  21. ↑ "Act 097, HB623 HD2 SD2 CD1" (PDF). 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Hawaii Electric blows past 2020 target on road to 100% renewable energy". RenewEconomy. February 23, 2021.
  23. ↑ "2016 Power Supply Improvement Plan (PSIP) Update" (PDF). 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  24. ↑ "Performance Based Regulation (PBR)". puc.hawaii.gov. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021.
  25. ↑ Trabish, Herman K. (January 19, 2021). "Hawaii finalizes utility regulation considered potential template for US power system transformation". Utility Dive . Archived from the original on January 19, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.